March 13, 2007

Topping out marks milestone in Critical Care Hospital construction

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By Pamela DiSalvo Lepley
Division of University Relations

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The topping out signifies that the uppermost steel member is going into place and that the structure has reached its height. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services
The topping out signifies that the uppermost steel member is going into place and that the structure has reached its height. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services

The Critical Care Hospital at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center officially became part of the Richmond skyline with the topping out today of the final steel beam, completing the structural frame of the $192 million building now under construction.

“This is an awesome sight,” said Eugene P. Trani, VCU president and president and chair of the VCU Health System. “This is the first construction project under the VCU 2020 master site plan and it clearly sets the vision of the VCU Medical Center as a nationally preeminent medical center.”

VCU Health System employees inscribe their signatures and messages to the beam before it is lifted to the top of the Critical Care Hospital. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services
VCU Health System employees inscribe their signatures and messages to the beam before it is lifted to the top of the Critical Care Hospital. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services

VCU Health System board members and employees inscribed messages on the beam before it was hoisted to the top of the 15-story, 368,000-square-foot hospital tower. With the topping out, the facility is more than a third complete.

When finished in the fall of 2008, the new hospital will enlarge the VCU Medical Center’s critical care capacity with new intensive care units for surgical trauma, neonatal, cardiac, neuroscience, medical respiratory and burn center patients. The project also includes patient bed floors for oncology and acute care specialties as well as the expansion of the Emergency Department, home to Central Virginia’s only Level 1 Trauma Center.

“The new hospital is a major step in the rebuilding of the medical center,” said Sheldon M. Retchin, M.D., VCU Health System CEO and vice president of VCU Health Sciences. “It will be a monument to the health and well being of all of Virginia.”

The Critical Care Hospital will provide 232 adult patient beds, increasing the VCU Medical Center’s ratio of private to semi-private beds from 37 percent to 70 percent. The typical room will average 250-square-feet and include a comfortable sitting area for the patient’s family.

During the ceremony, a crane lifts the steel beam to the top of the 15-story Critical Care Hospital building. A tree and the American flag are attached to the beam. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services
During the ceremony, a crane lifts the steel beam to the top of the 15-story Critical Care Hospital building. A tree and the American flag are attached to the beam. Photo by Allen Jones, VCU Creative Services

A state-of-the-art neonatal intensive care unit will include 40 bassinets in a single-room design that permits overnight stays by parents. The new NICU will provide for improved infection control and enhance the developmental care for each neonate patient. The focus of the NICU is on family, and it will house a family resource center that includes a lounge, education areas and sibling play areas.

“At the end of the day, the miracles that will happen in the new building reflect the quality of the physicians, nurses, therapists, technicians, support staff and all of the hospital employees who make it happen every day,” said John Duval, CEO of MCV Hospitals.

The VCU Medical Center is the major referral center for Central Virginia. The construction of the new hospital enables the medical center to better respond to the critical care needs of the region.

The new hospital is located at 1213 East Clay St., behind the VCU Medical Center’s Main Hospital.